Epilogue: An Alternate Version
by batchiq
Summary: An alternate version of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' epilogue. JKR owns most of the characters, 'cept those I made up, of course


Epilogue  
Nineteen years later. . . .

"Okay, everyone, family picture time!" Mr. Weasley cried with much enthusiasm. Every one in the vicinity groaned. "Now, now! We need to update the pictures from last year! After all, you've all grown taller, and me, I've gotten shorter." Every one forgot their aggravation and chuckled as Mr. Weasley took out the ancient camera. "Now, who will be first?"

"I think that we should have all of the grandchildren go first, you know, take a lovely picture with the lot of them. Harry, would you be so kind to step behind the camera so that Arthur and I can be in the picture with them?" Mr. Weasley moaned quietly. Harry did as asked, going behind the dusty relic of a camera. He watched as Mr. and Mrs. Weasley coaxed all of the children into the tiny frame, half dragging Hugo and Albus into sight.

"Now, Teddy, dear," Mrs. Weasley said as she began to fix the many children's hair into perfection, "would you stand behind us, please? You've gotten so tall that I'm afraid the next time I see you, I'll need a ladder to cut your hair." Teddy quickly obliged, patting his hair nervously. "That's a good lad. Now, Victoire, stand here, next to Granddad Weasley." Victoire did so, giving Teddy an enamored look. "Hugo, Rose, you two here, Albus, ALBUS YOU GET BACK HERE THIS INSTANT! That's better, now, you will be here, next to James. Lily, Fred, no, Whitney, no, wait, yes, Whitney! You two will be here. And Fred and Jane, over here, Winifred, next to me please. There, that's the ticket! Now, Charlie hand me Beth. There we go. We're all ready, Harry!"

Harry nodded, looking through the viewfinder at all the people before him. He saw Teddy's hair quickly change from his preferred lime green to the exact same shade of red that Ginny's hair was. He smiled, seeing James and Albus standing next to each other, trying not to get into trouble. Before any raucous could begin, Harry clicked the shutter, trapping them in the film forever.

Arthur cleared his throat. "Now, Percy, Ron, Ginny, Bill, Charlie, Fr-" he paused for a second. "George, why don't you all get in here for a picture with your mother and I?" All the eldest of the Weasley clan made their way to the middle of the room where the children had just posed before.

Mrs. Weasley assumed her mandating role again after handing her grand-daughter to Hermione, positioning all of her children in the perfect way, smoothing their hair, and threatening to cut Bill's again. She even licked her fore finger and thumb and tried to get a spot of dirt that was on Ron's face off.

"Mum, geroff me." He complained as the children giggled at his misfortune.

"But, Ronald dear, you have a smidgen of dirt on your face." She abandoned the attempt and faced forward. "Ready when you are, dear." She said, smiling. Harry once again peered through the hole at the people that he was going to immortalize forever on the negative. The picture was merry, but it didn't seem full enough to him. There was a spot between George and Percy where Fred would have stood, looking comical as usual, instigating George and turning a serious moment into something that was completely opposite that. Nonetheless, Harry took the picture, hole and all.

"Now, individual families, then the group photo!" An autocratic Mrs. Weasley said, taking Harry's place from behind the camera.

She was soon coordinating all of the many Weasley branches into order, this one here, that one there, and so forth. She took pictures of Ron's family first, Hugo, Rose, Hermione, and him all standing together, looking like the perfect family that some people dreamed about. Harry recalled the first time that he met the both of them and smiled. _If someone had told me then that they would end up married with two beautiful children, I would have laughed them in the face._ He thought as Mrs. Weasley tried to remove the dirt a second time to avail.

Next to come were Percy and his wife Penelope, her belly stretched far from the pregnancy. Earlier that day, everyone bet on what she was going to have. So far, there were three galleons on her having twin boys, identical, four sickles on her having a baby girl, and five sickles and a knut on her having twins, boy and a girl. Whoever won the bet, Percy said, would get to be their godparent. Despite the bets and slight competition, everyone was happy for the couple considering that they had been together for almost twenty six years and were having their first child.

Then came Harry's family. Ginny beamed as she stood proudly with her children and husband. Harry wrapped an arm around Teddy's shoulder, knowing what it was like to feel like an intruder in a family. He was almost taller than Harry these days. James kept poking Albus in the side, making him squirm. Of all of Harry's children, he had to name the one who was the most mischievous after his father. Lily was one the other side of Albus, looking rather down. She wanted to go to Hogwarts so badly this year, but couldn't for another two. She had her mother's hair, like James did. Only Albus had inherited his looks.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted by the flash of the camera. He shook his head vigorously for a second, blinking madly.

"Charlie and Beth next." Harry watched sadly as Charlie carried his seven month old baby to the floor. He had had a hard year. His late wife, who also happened to be a dragon studier in Romania, had passed away ten days after giving birth to their daughter, Bethany. She decided to go out into a dragon's nest to collect eggs. What she didn't know was that the dragon was still there, and she was rearing mad. His wife was scorched to death. After that, Charlie swore to never go near another dragon for as long as he lived. Beth was the only thing that mattered to him any more.

Their picture was done quickly to avoid making Beth fussy. Bill, Fleur, and Victoire came to the center of the room next. Fleur and Victoire's hair glimmered beautifully, taking away the ugliness of Bill's scars. Harry remembered holding little Victoire for the first Christmas that he and Ginny were married. He recalled how feather soft her hair was, how beautiful the red headed little girl had been. He remembered wishing for a child as beautiful as her, and looked down at his side were Lily was holding his hand and staring off blankly. A small smile crept to his face.

George and Heather went forward, taking along Whitney, Fred, and Jane. Whitney and Fred were spitting images of their father and uncle, except that they were girls, not boys. Though the two were identical like Fred and George had been, the girls couldn't have been any more different. George had named the first Winifred because of the promise he had made on his twin's grave. She lived up to name, making it her own, and becoming more and more like her namesake with each passing day, playing as one of the Beaters for the Gryffindor Quidditch team and earning the reputation of "Human bludger." Whitney, on the other hand, took after her mother, supporting the Chudley Cannons not because she understood the game, but because she thought that Oliver Wood, the greatest Keeper to ever live, was the most gorgeous person to walk the earth. Jane was a miniature version of her muggle mother, possessing no magic powers, but nonetheless able to thrive in a society that was based on magic. Harry couldn't help but feel despair seeing the family, knowing that if Fred were still alive, their families would have taken the picture together, their arms around each other's shoulders and laughter echoing throughout the room. Even George seemed to notice this at the same time, his eyes welling up slightly as the flash went off.

Mr. Weasley dabbed his eyes. "Now, the family portrait. This one's going on the wall over there." He pointed to the wall that was already filled with many waving photographs of the family, each picture seeming to add more and more people with each passing year. The entire group reluctantly complied, shuffling their feet warily to the middle of the room. Everyone already knew where they were to stand, it was almost automatic. Mr. Weasley quickly ran over, his wand at the ready to set the flash off.

"Smile for the camera, everyone!" The camera flashed for the umpteenth time, blinding them all.

All relaxed, knowing that the next family gathering Mr. Weasley would dust off the camera and the whole process would be repeated again.

And this was normal. It was a part of Harry's normal life. He casually brushed his scar as he removed his bangs from his face. It hadn't plagued him in years. It was because of this scar that he became the Boy Who Lived, the Chosen One, and Harry the Great. It was because of this scar that he had suffered, that innocent loved ones had died. And it was because of his scar that he had the life he had.

And if he could, Harry never would have changed a single thing.


End file.
